Just a quick post to pass on some information on the Next Level Armament NLX-11 450 brake. I have a Ruger American ranch and the factory brake works ok and looks aggressive.than I put a Ross brake on and it works better but deffening loud.Than I ran across the NLX-11 brake and in my opinion it does a much better job in recoil reduction and the sound blast is much less than the factory or the Ross brake They are 65.00 on the next level armament website and well worth the money. Check it out https://nextlevelarms.com/wp-content/up ... en-2-1.jpg

I run one of these on a pinned 14.5 Dead Shot barrel and have been very pleased. Recoil seems tamed well but it's hard to tell on a lightweight rig. Blast doesn't seem terrible. My Ruger didn't come with the factory brake so can't compare but for the money I think these are very good.

I just recieved mine today. I'm going to replace the factory brake on my Ruger American Ranch Rifle. I have never put a brake on a rifle before and it didn't come with any sort of instructions. Which way does the washer face? How are the holes to be oriented? How tight does it need to be? Thanks for any help with this matter.

Hi cjp1 The orientation should be a solid bar on top and the holes at one and eleven o’clock position.the crush washer will Need to be fitted correctly to do that.( you tube will help you out) but just take a thin o-ring from the hardware store That just fits over the threads and tighten the break by hand and go shooting it will not move and it is easy to index. You can play with the washer later.

You really don't need to mess with a crush washer. You can use some lock tite or RTV silicone to get your index. I've done many ARs this way and the brakes or flash hiders don't move. Your brake has many channels to get close so you shouldn't have But just a tiny gap between the barrel and brake. I just fill this in with RTV. Just be sure to clean the threads on both the barrel and brake so your "glue" sets up properly. I don't like to put that much stress on a barrel to crush the washer. It is even harder on a bolt gun if you don't have the proper vice jaws.

Teflon Plumber's Tape works well also. You can build up the number of turns to meet your desire for tightness. I keep a roll in my range bag. A $1.50 roll will do many applications, assuming you don't already have a few rolls in the man cave. IIRC, 3 1/2 tight turns did the trick on my 20" HBAR 450b. Clean both your threads before using.

Hoot

In Theory, there is no difference between theory and practice. In Practice, there is.

I took my RAR to the range yesterday. I used an O-ring to hold the NLX-11 muzzle brake in place. It is very easy to put on or take off with no tools. I shot 39 times and I have to say that I'm very impressed with the muzzle brake. My forend only came off my front bag 2-3 inches. That was with me holding the rear bag with my left hand and my right hand/finger squeezing the trigger. With the factory brake my forend came off the front bag at least 6" or more and that was with me holding onto the forend rather than the rear bag. Besides taking at least half of the muzzle climb away it wasn't as loud as the factory brake. I highly recommend this brake for anyone looking to purchase one for their AR or RAR rifle in 450 BM.

I have an AR upper and a RAR. With the same factory load, the RAR recoils far worse, to the point of being uncomfortable. Originally, the base rifle weighed 5.5 pounds and I brought it up to 7.5 pounds. I added 1 pound to the forearm and 1 pound to the butt stock. The added weight cut the recoil by about 30 percent (if I recall my numbers). I have also used an IZZY, Wilson Combat and Ross brakes. None of which really did much. I didn't care for the blast directed at me from the Ross. The Ross may have worked better than the other two, but the blast negated the perception.

Based on the recommendation of this thread, I purchased the NLX-11 brake. The NLX-11 brake really does work. The muzzle rise is nil and the recoil is reduced considerably. Blast is loud for those on either side of the muzzle, but I did not get any directed at me and it didn't seem as loud as the Ross. I do recommend the NLX-11 brake.